


The Risk of Loving

by KatB



Category: British Actor RPF, Tom Hiddleston - Fandom
Genre: Angst, Cheating, F/M, Flirting, Love, Love at First Sight
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-19
Updated: 2017-06-19
Packaged: 2018-11-16 02:00:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11244012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatB/pseuds/KatB
Summary: Falling in love always comes with a risk. Both Tom Hiddleston, world famous actor, and Lindsay, American teacher living in London, know about those risks. So neither of them are actually looking for it. Tom because he's convinced to have had enough bad experience with relationships for quite a while and Lindsay because she believes to already have found her Mr Right. But when the paths of Tom and Lindsay cross in a little cafe in London, things and opinions change for the both of them.





	The Risk of Loving

Lindsay distantly sipped on her tea before focussing on the magazine in her hands again. She glanced over the glossy pages, admiring the pictures of the handsome man wearing various suits in different shades of brown. She had lost count of the number of times she had read that one particular article, but she was sure to have reached several dozen by now. First she read it online, and when she'd finally gotten herself a copy of the magazine, she made sure to always take it with her. Lindsay couldn't get enough of Taffy Akner's story on Tom Hiddleston. To her, it was such a beautiful piece of journalism. So honest and pure. But now, sitting in her favourite little cafe in London, she purposely avoided paying any attention to the written words in front of her. Simply because she knew that reading the article again would cause her to shed more than one tear and crying in public places wasn't her favourite thing to do. So instead, she lost herself in the pictures of her favourite actor. Tom Hiddleston. Once again, she couldn't help but admire how incredibly attractive he looked in these pictures.

A look at her watch told Lindsay that she still had more than an hour until she had to be at the school to prepare the parent-teacher conference. Since the rainy and stormy weather didn't encourage her to go for a walk through the streets of the city she loved so much, she decided to order herself another cup of tea. She couldn't help but smile at how British she had become in the last 4 years. When she arrived in London, she was the typical American Starbucks coffee addict. Now she sometimes thought that she might have tea running through her veins instead of blood. And of course Oliver had influenced her a lot on that. Oliver loved tea.

Enjoying the hot brew in front of her and still gazing down at the pictures of Tom, a cool breeze caressed her body and interrupted her train of – admittedly not entirely innocent – thoughts. Not many people knew this little cafe hidden in a narrow London alley. So Lindsay looked up to see who had entered. Next thing she knew, she had spilled tea all over herself and the magazine. Her empty cup was rolling around on the floor. She could feel all eyes in the room fixed on her and felt incredibly uncomfortable. But before she even had time to blush with embarrassment, a velvet voice brought her back to reality.

„There you go, darling.“

The tall and handsome man that had just walked in a few moments ago, picked up the tea cup from the floor and set in on the table in front of her. He then flashed a shy smile at her and turned around without another word.

Unable to take her eyes off of him, Lindsay watched him as he moved to the hidden little table in the back corner of the cafe. Even though he was out of her sight, she still stared in his direction. Tom's direction. Tom fucking Hiddleston. Did that really just happen? Was he really in the same cafe as her? And most importantly...did she actually just embarrass herself in front of the man she had adored for years? Lindsay buried her face in her hands and tried to collect her thoughts.

Suddenly, she realised something and glanced down at herself. The previously white satin blouse she was wearing was now covered in tea stains. She rolled her eyes at her own clumsiness. There was no way she could meet with parents looking like that. Thankfully, there was still enough time to swing by the apartment and change into something else. So she quickly gathered her belongings and was already on her way to the counter to pay, when a thought crossed her mind.

Could she really walk out of here without seizing the opportunity to talk to him?! Lindsay shook her head and then turned on her heel. It's now or never, she thought. As she approached him, she could tell that he was very focussed on reading something that looked like a possible movie script. Simply the thought of him having another project lined up made her heart race. Tom was so drawn in by whatever he was reading that he didn't even notice Lindsay standing in front of his table. It was only when she cleared her throat that he looked up at her.

„Oh, hello again“, he said with a slight smile on his face.

Lindsay's mouth was completely dry and she didn't even know what to say. All she could think about in this moment was...him. And the fact that he looked even more handsome in real life. It seemed as if he was used to this kind of reaction from his probably mainly female fans. So instead of getting impatient, Tom simply looked at her with a curious sparkle in his eyes. While waiting for her to regain her ability to talk, he scanned her with his eyes. As soon as he noticed the magazine she was clutching tightly with both her hands, every trace of a smile disappeared from his face.

„Look, if you're here to talk about my former relationships, I will have to disappoint you. I have no intention of sharing any more of my private life in public“, Tom said to the baffled woman, in a tone that was a lot more harsh than he had intended it to be. But he was so tired of answering questions about what had happened between him and Taylor.

Still a bit lost for words, Lindsay simply shook her head before returning to her usual eloquence. „Oh please, that would be the last thing I would want to discuss with you. Your relationships are your business, not mine. I may have an opinion on it. But since you didn't ask for it, I will keep it to myself. What I actually want to do, is to thank you.“

„Thank me?“, Tom asked, his smile slowly returning to his face. „It was just an empty cup...“

„An empty...ugh, no...that's not what I meant.“ Lindsay silently cursed his quick wit that seemed to always be one step ahead of hers. „I don't want to thank you for that. I mean...I do. But not...I just...“ She felt herself blushing and had to fight the childish urge to simply run away.

„What's your name?“

„L-Lindsay“, she replied in a shaky voice.

„Lindsay...breathe.“ The smile that appeared on his face actually made it harder for her to accomplish that. But eventually, Lindsay did as she was told. „There you go, darling. Now...“ Tom didn't finish the sentence and instead waited for her to find the right words.

„I've been meaning to thank you for quite some time now.“ With every breath, Lindsay felt her confidence return. „I want to thank you for your enthusiasm about Shakespeare. It makes teaching the bard's poetry to my students so much easier. Because once they learn that Loki actually thinks Will Shakes is pretty cool, they become a lot more open to studying his work.“

Tom let out a little laugh. The familiar sound of „ehehehe“ was music to Lindsay's ears and she couldn't help but look at him like she would at a puppy she was willing to adopt.

„So you're a teacher?“

„Yes, English and American literature“, Lindsay nodded. „And getting 14-year-olds to read Shakespeare can be like fighting a losing battle. To them, it's boring and pointless. And I've noticed that they very often lack confidence in themselves.“

„How so?“, he asked and Lindsay could tell that he was actually interested in her answer.

„Well, Shakespeare's stories are complex. And very often students believe that they are not smart enough to understand the plot. I don't know why but it happens quite a lot.“

„Then I am sure they appreciate having a teacher who helps them realise that they are entirely wrong.“ Tom's smile and his charm were almost too much for Lindsay to handle.

„I...um...well...I don't always know if they appreciate it but I definitely try my best to help them overcome their fear of Shakespeare. Well, literature in general.“ Suddenly, she remembered that the parent-teacher conference was getting closer and that she still had to change her outfit. „Tom...may I call you Tom?“, she asked nervously.

„That is what people generally tend to go for, yes. But if any other name seems more fitting to you, I am willing to compromise.“

Lindsay couldn't help but chuckle and roll her eyes a little bit at him. That man... „Well, Tom, I'd love to stay and talk about Shakespeare with you, but duty calls. I have a parent-teacher conference to get to and since you completely threw me off my game earlier, I need to make a quick detour and change into something without tea spilled all over it.“ To support her statement, she moved the magazine she was still clutching to the side and showed Tom her tea-stained blouse.

He nodded. „I see. Well, I believe at least the fathers wouldn't notice anything wrong because they'd be too busy admiring your smile. But I do understand your desire to change into something else.“ His compliment took Lindsay completely by surprise and she could feel herself blushing once more. „But...are you sure you want to go outside in that rain?“

„I've lived in London for four years now. I'm used to the rain. Besides, it's not like a I have a choice.“

„You do, actually.“ He looked at her through his lashes and Linsay couldn't help but admire how long and beautiful they were. „You could let me give you a ride. That way you wouldn't get soaked and we could chat some more about Shakespeare.“

Unable to answer just yet, she simply stood there and looked at him with her mouth hanging open. Did Tom Hiddleston just offer to give her a ride? She knew that there was no way she could accept that offer. „That's very kind, but you just got here and I wouldn't want to keep you from your reading. Besides, you haven't even had any tea or coffee yet.“

„So?!“ She looked at him once again and once again her brain refused to cooperate. „How about a deal? You allow me to give you a lift and in return, we meet here again in a few days and then you can buy me all the coffee you want.“

Was he...did he just ask her out?! Lindsay's head was spinning. How was any of this even happening. „Are you going to give me a ride to school too? Because otherwise I won't accept“, she replied and was shocked by her own sass.

Without saying a word, Tom closed the script in front of him, gathered his things and got up elegantly. He walked over to Lindsay and stood very close to her. „Let's go then.“

*****

Lindsay quickly applied some pink lipgloss and ran her fingers through her blonde bob. Then she looked at herself in the mirror. All she had done was change from her white, tea-stained blouse into a light pink one. But she still needed to make sure she looked at least somehow attractive. Because despite the fact that she had a handsome and successful boyfriend, she couldn't help but wanting to make an impression on Tom. He was waiting for her in his car downstairs. She had left all off her paperwork and her bag in the car with him, mostly because she wanted to make sure that he didn't drive off while she was upstairs. After one last deep breath, she grabbed her keys and an umbrella for the way home and rushed out the door.

Just ten minutes later, Tom parked his black Jaguar in front of Lindsay's school. He unbuckled his seatbelt and slightly turned to look at her. „There you go, darling. Should be right on time.“

He was right, she still had about 15 minutes until the first parents would arrive. „I really can't thank you enough for driving me.“

„Oh please, don't mention it. It was entirely my pleasure. And I meant what I said, you know?! Your students really are lucky to have you as their teacher.“

„Would you mind reminding them of that every now and then?“, Linday asked with a chuckle.

Tom looked right into her eyes. „Whatever you need, darling.“

Lindsay didn't know what to reply so she simply held out her hand to him. He took it and started to slowly shake it. „Goodbye, Tom. And thank you again for everything. It's really was a pleasure talking to you.“

„Yes, it truly was.“ He smiled at her and then let go of her hand.

Lindsay grabbed her bag and her papers and then got out of the car as quickly and elegantly as she could. She slammed the car door shut, waved at Tom one more time and then turned around. Just as she opened the glass door of the school building, she could hear the Jag's engine roaring again and when she turned around to catch a last glimpse of Tom, she only saw the back lights of his car as he drove off into the rain.

 


End file.
